A Conversation of the Deaf?

I received a mail that was sent out from Iraq that contained a horrific propaganda message in that it compared the Holocaust to what the Arabs of Eretz Yisrael experienced. Maybe you have seen it.

I wrote back to all the attached addresses and here is my reaction:-

The PowerPoint Presentation making a comparison between what was done to the Jews and what Arabs suffer as a result of the Arab-Israel conflict over the Palestine Mandate is, at first glance, horrifying.

But besides that, some people may presume that the message is genuine: what the Nazis did do the Jews, the Jews do to Arabs.

That, of course, is not only wrong but facile.

a) Jews have no ideology that Arabs are vermin like Nazis called the Jews or worse. The conflict, from a Jewish point-of-view is nationalist; not theological. And as always, there are a few who break that rule but we are still looking for an Arab "Peace Now" which would indicate there is someone on the other side for balance.

b) In Europe, Jews were herded up, killed and placed in concentration camps only because they were Jews. None of them bombed pizza parlors, supermarkets, blew themselves up in churches, on buses, on rail trains unlike what Arabs practice.

c) worse, the Grand Mufti Amin El-Husseini fled to Berlin after the pro-Nazi revolt in Iraq failed and made broadcasts on behalf of Nazis, mobilized Muslim Bosnians to the Waffen SS and successfully halted rescue efforts of Jews to flee Europe.

d) I guess someone could be clever and compare marriage to prostitution, or a doctor operating to a serial killer.

One person out of 30 responded:-

With all due respect, I did not ask for your opinion on this. So please refrain from sending me e-mails moving forward.

I replied:-

Sorry, I thought that an inquisitive mind and willingness to hear varied opinions is the basis of a human being, which permits dialogue, bettering each person's own personal worth and and contributing to an improved society.

You will not hear from me again.

VH then wrote:

You stated:

a) Jews have no ideology that Arabs are vermin like Nazis called the Jews or worse. The conflict, from a Jewish point-of-view is nationalist; not theological.

What about the claim of "the promised land" that is not theological? One reason I am not interested in your opinion. Furthermore, when I requested that you refrain from e-mailing me, you did not have the decency to consider my wishes; very indicative of your society.

I would appreciate you NOT/NOT writing me again.

I didn't.

But as my veteran readers know, one need not believe in a God or that he promised us a land. The Land of Israel for over 3000 years has been the residency, the homeland of the Jews. Non-Jewish source as well as archeology support this.

In fact, it was promised to us: by the League of Nations, following the Balfour Declaration, following the Versailles Peace Conference and the San Remo Conference. And the United Nations recommended it be established.

We, of course, refer to this "promise" as no more than a recognition of our historical, legal, natural, cultural and religious rights, as all other nations, to our homeland.

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Mufti Checkmates King

Saudi Arabia's grand mufti Abdelaziz al-Sheikh has rejected an attempt by the government to open interreligious dialogue with Jewish rabbis.

According to a report by the official Kuwaiti news agency Kuna on Wednesday, the mufti refused to accept any visit by rabbis to a conference on interreligious dialogue, expected to be held in the kingdom's capital Riyadh.

A week ago, Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz Ibn Saud announced the conference in what appears to be the first attempt at dialogue between the three monotheistic faiths, Islam, Judaism and Christianity.

Any move to create dialogue between Saudi Arabia's imams and Israel's rabbis would be groundbreaking on a religious and political level in the Middle East.

Saudi Arabia currently has no diplomatic relations with Israel.

But Saudi Arabia's mufti tried to quickly distance himself from the announcement by the Saudi monarch.

"I ask the media to check their facts and report the truth before spreading the news," said al-Sheikh.

King Abdullah announced plans to host the conference when he met participants who attended the Japan-Muslim world meeting on dialogue among civilisations last month.

The proposal for an interreligious meeting came after the monarch's visit to the Vatican in Rome last November, where he was received by Pope Benedict XVI.

Source

Oh, well, Rabbis Rosen, Melchior and Fruman will have to postpone their junket.

Jewish-Christian Dialogue

While googling around for the name Shiloh, I came across a Christian site that discussed the events of Shiloh and I sent out this message:-

As I live in Shiloh, the original Shiloh in Israel, I am happy to see you discussing spiritual concepts related to the site of the Tabernacle.

And I received a reply:-

It's amazing how deep the Scriptures are with all these references and types foreshadowing Christ.

To which I answered:-

or another

Which elicited this reaction:-

None can compare to Christ

So, I wrote back:-

well, if you mean that as a generic term or as a translation for Messiah, I'm in agreement.

And then Troy insisted:-

No it is not a generic term. Jesus is a real person and God as proven.

The moment had come. I had to be blunt:-

As I am Jewish, I respect your religious beliefs but they are not mine.
As Hannah already prayed here at Shiloh, "There is none holy as the LORD, for there is none beside Thee; neither is there any rock like our God." I Samuel 2:2.

That didn't sit too well with Troy who responded:-

Then you are going to hell. The LORD in 1 Sam. 2.2 therefore, effectively is not the one you worship, for you reject Him who is your sacrifice to atone for your sins (Is. 53). God gave Himself for you, and you reject this mercy through His only begotten Son-the suffering servant!

I attempted to be moderate:-

I really thought we were having a decent theological conversation. Please, don't threaten me with hell. After all that has been done in the name of a nice Jewish boy from Judea to the Jewish people over the past two millenia, I don't think any Christian today has any right to threaten a Jew with hell.
You need not reply.

It didn't help:-

I am not threatening you with hell but imparting to you the fact of the Scriptures what is going to happen to you. If you are a Jew or from any other nation that calls Jesus a liar, you are going to hell. That is why I am convinced you're going to hell. I am just being honest with you by the evidence God has provided. You don't have to reply. Just give your life to Christ to be saved. There is no other way to the Father except through Christ. My prayers go out to you.

I stopped the "dialogue" at that point.